Institute

Founded in 1994, the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science (MPIWG) in Berlin is one of the more than 80 research institutes administered by the Max Planck Society. It is dedicated to the study of the history of science and aims to understand scientific thinking and practice as historical phenomena.

People

The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science comprises scholars across all Departments and Research Groups, as well as an Administration team, IT Support, Research IT Group, and Research Coordination and Communications team.

Publications & Resources

The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science (MPIWG) engages with the research community and broader public, and is committed to open access.

This section provides access to published research results and electronic sources in the history of science. It is also a platform for sharing ongoing research projects that develop digital tools.

Researchers at the Institute benefit from an internal library service. The Institute’s research is also made accessible to the wider public through edited Feature Stories and the Mediathek’s audio and video content.

News & Events

The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science frequently shares news, including calls for papers and career opportunities. The Media & Press section highlights press releases and the Institute's appearances in national and global media. Public events—including colloquia, seminars, and workshops—are shown on the events overview.

Juan-Andres Leon

Visiting Scholar (Feb 2017-Dec 2018)

Juan-Andreas Leon Gomez joined the Research Program on the History of the Max Planck Society (GMPG) in 2017. Juan-Andres studied physics and history before completing his PhD in the History of Science with a dissertation entitled "Citizens of the Chemical Complex," in which he explored the world of science philanthropy of Imperial and Weimar Germany and its impact in the applied sciences, physics, mathematics and astronomy. His work lies at the intersection of social and environmental history, and focuses on the transition from personal and philanthropic support networks towards national science organizations such as the Max Planck Society, as well as multinational scientific initiatives such as Atoms for Peace, CERN, and a multitude of astronomical observatories. Parallel to his academic trajectory, Juan-Andres has pursued a museum career that focuses on modern scientific instrumentation and computing.

At the GMPG, Juan-Andres’s research topic ““Cosmochemistry and Astroparticle Research in the MPG” looks at the West German participation in the construction of large astronomical observatories in foreign countries in the second half of the twentieth century, a story in which geographical necessity tested the boundaries between scientific autonomy and the democratic responsibility of scientists.